Spas and Spa Visiting by Ian Rotherham

Author:Ian Rotherham
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Spas and Spa Visiting
ISBN: 9780747814733
Publisher: Osprey Publishing

Sailors looking decidedly in need of therapy are shown drinking the waters at Tunbridge Wells.

The iron-rich waters of the chalybeate well at Tunbridge Wells.

The waters of Tunbridge Wells are still a major draw for tourists and the town thrives on its reputation for fashion and good taste. The elevated section of the the Pantiles begins on the left, and the porch of the building centre left shelters the spring waters.

A print illustrating Epsom Common, close to the spa, in 1662. It shows how little development there was at that time.

Epsom’s strength was also its weakness, since it was too close to London to be sufficiently exclusive for discerning patrons. When it became overrun by tradesmen and lesser people, the nobility and royalty left, their places being taken by the wealthy middle classes. In the early eighteenth century, the town still received two thousand visitors a day to take the waters, and business was good. However, the spa had gone down-market and was no longer fashionable. Worse was to come, since, under the unremitting pressure of the masses, the unique healing well ran dry. With much subterfuge, to safeguard their livelihoods, local businessmen secretly began to top up the well from other nearby sites. The new sources lacked the essential mineral content of the genuine Epsom waters and the spa’s reputation dwindled. The old source was bought and closed down by Dr John Livingstone to prevent further contamination and protect the well’s reputation. However, in a suspiciously lucky turn of events, he soon discovered a new source of healing waters and he relaunched the spa town with new assembly rooms and gaming facilities. For a short while business boomed as the new project attracted patronage from Prince George, the Prince Regent, and his mistress, Mrs Fitzherbert. However, George soon grew bored with Epsom’s Oriental Bazaar and moved his attentions to his new oriental-style palace at Brighton, the Royal Pavilion. This marked the final downturn in Epsom’s fortunes, as fashionable visitors flocked to Brighton on the coat tails of the Prince Regent. However, Epsom’s heritage lives on, immortalised by its liver salts, packed and sold to other spa towns and to chemists across the country, for anyone feeling a little ‘liverish’.

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